


Kitty's changes

by QUOM



Category: Six - Marlow/Moss
Genre: Aromantic, Asexuality, Fluff, Friendship, Headcanon, I Wrote This Instead of Sleeping, I'm Bad At Summaries, I'm Bad At Tagging, I'm Bad At Titles, No Plot/Plotless, One Shot, Other, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Pansexual Character, everyone just friends
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-11-06
Updated: 2020-12-17
Packaged: 2021-03-09 02:34:45
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 7,101
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27417352
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/QUOM/pseuds/QUOM
Summary: When Catherine Howard returns from the dead alongside Henry's other wives, she first deals with the events of her previous life, and what she missed in them.
Relationships: Anne Boleyn & Katherine Howard, Anne of Cleves & Katherine Howard, Catherine of Aragon & Katherine Howard, Katherine Howard & Catherine Parr, Katherine Howard & Jane Seymour
Comments: 6
Kudos: 26





	1. Chapter 1

The sun rays shone through the kitchen window on the woman, her foot tapping mindlessly on the floor. The water in the electric kettle had reached boiling, and she poured it into her cup, stirring the dark liquid on her way to a table she shared with another five women.  
She found her plate opposite to a smiling Jane Seymour, who was looking proudly at relaxed Katherine Howard, which sat next to her. She was about to ask Anne Boleyn why all were smiling, but before she let out the words, Anne whispered in her ear, “Kitty’s slept all night, barely any nightmares.”  
Anne’s leg was bouncing by the end of the sentence, and she did not seem to mind the stern look Catherine of Aragon gave her. A smile spread across Cathy’s face, and she leaned back in her chair.  
Kitty looked at the women she had been living with ever since she was resurrected, Anna was reading the newspaper on one end of the cramped table, Anne who sat in front of her, told Cathy something, who smiled at her wildly, both ignoring the look Aragon gave them. She knew why they were all grinning, why every few seconds Jane looked at her with pride, but none of it was on her mind. She took a sip from the clear glass near her, keeping her hand wrapped around it as she spoke.  
“I-I want to go to school.”  
The statement, which haunted her thoughts at every hour of every day, bothered her in conversations with the others, made all five look at her in surprise.  
“School?” Cathy was the first to speak, and Kitty nodded. The other smiled lightly, and Anne was quick to follow.  
But while the three young queens were quick to reach an agreement, the three old ones seemed to think differently. Kitty drank again from her glass as she watched with wary eyes as the older queens exchanged looks and hand movements.  
“Look, Kat” Aragon started, and no one around the table needed to look at Anne to know she was rolling her eyes. “We can’t really send you to school.”  
She looked down at the white table map, her fingers playing with the end of it. “Why?” The question left her lips demanding and insisted, unlike the girl herself. The woman shifted in her seat, preparing for a long debate, “you work most week, or rehearse, and I don’t see how you can add school to all of it.”

***

By the time the breakfast ended, it seemed every possible argument had been suggested by one of them. Kitty had argued for herself to go to school, but even after she convinced Aragon that she should study, the question of how remained.  
As the older one argued, going to a regular school was not a possibility, since leaving the show was something they all refused to do. Evening class would not fit in her tight schedule, and the word ‘tutor’ made her feel sick. She could not learn in a small group since all she learned was reading and writing, and whatever education the other queens could give her, would be centuries old.  
Kitty helped Jane clear the table while the others had retired to their rooms, her head held low.  
“Don’t worry, I’m sure we’ll find something,” Jane mumbled softly to Kat, taking the dirty dishes from her. Kitty gave a faint smile to Jane, trying to believe her.  
Flicking the tap on, Jane started washing the plates. “Kit, I’ll find something, I promise.” Kitty hummed in reply, desperate to avoid the pitying look the older was giving her.  
Jane let out a short sigh, “go to your room, alright? Enjoy the rest day.” The blond smiled, and Kitty nodded quickly, forcing herself not to run up the wooden staircase.  
She entered her room, stopping for a second at the doorstep, her eyes quickly searching the dull room. Unlike the rest of the queens, she had not decorated the small space, which she preferred over the larger rooms she could have taken for herself.  
She laid down on the single bed, moving the pillow from beneath her head so she could hug it. She tightened her grip around the soft object, letting it pressuring her. She inhaled calmly, her eyes studying the ceiling, feeling more pressure building up between her and the silky fabric.  
A light knock on the door had caused her to leave the pillow, sitting quickly on the bed’s edge. She pushed her hair out of her sight, a chirp “yes?” Was asked in response to the knocking. The hinges squeaked as the door was opened to reveal a smiling Anne.  
“Hey, I thought you could use some company,” said Anne as she marched towards her, and plopped herself close. She ignored the other’s disheveled hair, shoving a board game box to her view. “You in?” Letting herself examine the colorful drawing, Kitty nodded “sure.”

***

Unsurprisingly, Anne’s overwhelming behavior and the deep will to beat her had almost caused Kitty to forget about the lack of education. Almost. Every time she tried to count the steps her figure got to take, she was annoyed. At every argument they had, which caused them to check the rules, she became frustrated. Numbers and letters were confusing and felt mocking her.  
She threw the two unmatching dice, too tired to stop herself from counting the sum on her fingers. A knock on the door had caused both of them to lift their heads to the sound. The hinges barely squeaked at the gentle push Jane gave to the door, “hey guys, just wanted to let you know that Cathy and I are going to a bookstore, so if you need us or something from outside…”  
Her voice faded at the empty stares she got from the girls. Anne looked bored at the mention of going to a bookstore, but Kitty felt something in her admitting defeat for she could not read a single book, not from this century, nor from her previous one.  
“Okay,” the word stretched awkwardly as Jane closed the door with the same gentleness she opened it. A small part of her that remembered too many lessons of politeness and what can happen if she will be rude, made her yell a quick “bye, drive safely!” at the closed door, receiving a “sure, goodbye!” in return.  
Anne looked at her, her eyebrows furrowed but the tips of her lips turning upwards. “What?” Kitty asked impatiently, knowing whatever Anne had on her mind will be said soon. “I just find it funny you’re being so polite, didn’t you say no one noticed when you didn’t show up to lessons?”  
In Kitty’s opinion, as much as the statement was true, it was equally unfortunate. At first, she told the queens proudly about how she escaped her boring private lessons, preferring to roam around. But she was soon to find it frustrating, in addition to being treated as a child due to her age, she was also treated as dumber than all.  
“Do you think you’ll be much different with other education?”  
The question came seemingly out of nowhere, but Anne knew clearly what concerns her cousin had, and why she came into her room carrying a board game. She knew what was the correct answer for Kitty, that she most certainly did not remember anything she learned. The true answer was that in this life her studies summed up to poor reading and a bit of math. In her previous life, some of what she learned had helped her to get along with nobles and monarchs, to survive a dangerous political game.  
She decided on the middle ground.  
“Probably,” she looked carefully at the other’s face. “I mean, now most of my knowledge is a bit…” she tried to find a fitting term, reminded of lessons of manners. “Dusty?” The suggestion was an insult, clearly present on Kitty’s wide smile.  
“Old,” she said in a cold voice that has just caused the other’s smile to grow.

***

One of the things Cathy felt thankful about was Jane’s nice personality. She was also glad Jane got a driver’s license, because it seemed that trees had jumped from nowhere whenever Cathy was in the driver’s seat.  
“Where to turn?” Despite being the best driver of them all, ‘Aragon will kill me for just thinking this’, Jane found the phone directions confusing and who sat next to her had to read it out loud.  
“Left.” The black car turned smoothly once the traffic lights changed its colors. “What do you think about Kitty?” The question was said in a nonchalant tone, but the two knew it was everything but. The older might support Kitty at home, but she could be feeling different. It might be Kitty’s education, nevertheless she preached for women’s education in her previous life, and she will in those.  
“I do realize why she wants to study. And, honestly I think in this case Aragon is wrong.” Aragon was the last word in most cases, not since she was better than any of them, or she was the head of the house, but more since she argued her point the longest and was mostly neutral.  
“Do you...do you think Kitty should quit and start school? They did say she will be better with other teens.” The sentence came out hesitant, no longer trying to push her stand on the matter. ‘They’ were nearly everyone around the odd group - from social workers and doctors, to producers and understudy, to whoever heard about them. They all told them Kitty should go to school, to be with other teens. Kitty usually let one of the six answer it, tired of reiterating her point.  
“No.” The word left Jane quickly, her tone cold and harsh. As Cathy looked at her tight knuckles she began to question if this was the right time for such emotional conversion. “I do think she should get an education, but there must be a better way than quit.” Jane’s tone had warmed and she seemed calmer, but her knuckles were still white.  
Cathy nodded, fearing to say the wrong thing while Jane was driving. The rest of the ride passed in complete silence, aside from the road directions being read out loud.  
The store came quickly to view, and the two left the car. Usually, Jane preferred to remain in the car, trying to imagine how so many new inventions came to life after she lost hers. But after the last time she had to wait for Cathy to return, she decided it will be quicker if she will go in with her.  
Cathy was patiently waiting for her as she locked the car, just barely stopping herself from running to check the new books, but Jane was glad she held herself. There was something fascinating about Cathy whenever she first stepped into a bookstore.  
Cathy pushed a red painted door, and a small bell rang as cold wind from the AC hit them. Her smile widened to reveal her pearly teeth, and she took a deep breath to inhale the smell of old papers of used books, mixed with new pages in shiny binding. Her eyes were quick to spot a shelf filled with titles that interested mostly her.  
Jane let her open books, skim through summaries, examine the cover drawings. She herself was simply standing near the cash register, where a teenager was playing on his phone. She looked around her, hoping that Cathy will be finished soon.  
A bright cover of a thin book caught her eye. “Math For Kids - Get Ready To 1st Grade!” The cover featured a girl and a boy, whose heads were twice as big as their bodies, but smiled nevertheless. She picked up the book, and even with her poor understanding of math and nowadays English, she could understand what the workbook purpose was.  
Looking at the shelf she picked it from, she could see many other workbooks, all with similar titles and bright colors, promising to teach kids English and math and geography and so many things Kitty should know.  
While she picked up as many as she could, making sure to include all subjects, Cathy stepped towards her, holding a thick book in each hand. She took one look at the pile Jane was holding to realize and helped her carry it all to the teen.  
The two were soon in the car, Jane’s fingers nervously tapping the wheel, clicking her tongue at every stall in their way. Cathy stared out of the window, a part of her worried - the older queens were already treating Kitty like a child, she probably would hate to have children's books to study from.  
‘At least Aragon could not tell her not to do this,’ she tried to think positively. Before she could put on a fake smile, she and Jane were at the front door, each holding a heavy bag.  
Jane unlocked the door, finding Aragon sitting at the table.  
The dark woman looked at them confused.  
“You two are okay? You seem a little...excited.”  
Taking a look at Jane, Cathy could not help but agree.   
There was an energetic look on their faces, their smiles stretched wide. Jane’s hair was in a disarray, most of it escaped from a ponytail. Cathy’s eyes were moving in their sockets, searching for something.  
Standing up to face the two, Aragon flinched as Jane yelled “Kitty!”  
“Can any of you explain to me why you two look like you’ve ju-” but the woman was cut short, for Anne and Kitty came to view.  
As they climbed down the stairs, the cousins exchanged a look of bewilderment. Once they got to the last stair, Anne made sure to stand slightly before Kitty, her glance suspicious at the two.  
“Yeah?” The youngest asked after standing in the odd silence for a moment or two.

***

It took a long conversion, and the support of all to convince Kitty to study using the children’s workbooks.  
As the sun rays shone on Cathy, poured the water into her mug. She stirred liquid on her way to the cramped table, sitting next to Anne.  
In front of her sat Kitty, her heart quenched as she saw dark circles under the youngest’s eyes. Kitty looked at her, giving her a small smile. For the first time since her resurrection, Kitty finished all the food on her plate, quickly putting aside her dishes and pulling out a colorful workbook.


	2. Chapter 2

The pale moon shone at the group as they crossed the empty street, all wearing too thin clothes for the cold morning. The skies above them slowly changing their dark colors to lighter ones, not a star in sight. Their first show for the day was scheduled for late morning, but they planned to hang out with their understudies before the show, which made them come earlier.  
The AC blew cold air on the group as they entered the theater, replacing the coldness of the early morning. They arrived to the room just as the clock hands had shown they had two minutes to spare, but it did not stop the producer from looking at his watch with a displeased look.  
They all ignored it. Aside from being on time, they had Aragon and Anna at the front of their group. The two divorced wives had proven over and over why they should not be argued with, and how wrong were all who mistook them for weak and obedient.  
Growing bored from the hushed talking and yawns in the usually lifeful room, Anne put her bag aside. She was about to look for Cathy’s understudy, one of the few people who could keep up with her, but a loud clap sounded from the center of the room.  
The producer pointed to his watch, but the clap was enough of an agreed sign for a movement to start in the room. Kitty and the rest of the group put their bags near Anne’s, all of them looking a bit more awake.  
Bright lights were turned on, and their dance rehearsal was about to start. But before any of them was able to even stretch a muscle, the door opened, the theater warm lights looking pale compared to the gray ones that came in, alongside a girl.  
The girl had closed the door, out of breath. Her usually flowing dark locks were now in a messy bun, her clothes were not matching and needed ironing and her face was clean from makeup. She put her bag aside, and before any of the queens could take a step towards her, the producer did.  
“You know what time it is?!” If there was one thing Aragon had to put at the top of her reasoning for not liking the man, this was it. Not the short temper itself, this they shared, but the way he yelled, not noticing how everyone around him were shrinking into themselves, not caring for the traumatized women who knew those yelling too well. Looking at the group of women around her, it was clear that Kitty was the one hurting the most. Stronger men used to be always around her, demanding and taking, shouting at her refusal.  
“That’s enough.” The producer turned to her, surprised anyone had dared to speak while he was giving too long of a lecture about being on time. “Excuse me?” The man at least had the decency to sound sincere. “We get it, Maggie was late, being a star got to her head, can you stop yelling, for god’s sake?” By the end of her sentence she barely had stopped herself from shouting, but she had to remind herself not to, as well as to replace the cuss word.  
Looking at the woman from toe to head, the man seemed to finally be recovering to his senses. “Fine.” He said, once again proving to the resurrected that this century men were never taught better. He turned away, once facing more of the crew he froze for a moment, realizing how many people he managed to get looking at him with wide, terrified eyes. “Take a minute,” he said, his ears becoming red as he left the room, his head down.  
Running to the girl, Anne quickly embraced her. “Are you all right?” The sentence was mumbled to the girl’s shoulder, similar to the affirmative hum that was against Anne’s.  
Turning to the queens, Aragon could see that Jane was already taking care of the girl, while both Anna and Cathy looked around, awkward.  
Letting out a sigh, Aragon realized it was going to be a long rehearsal, and that they need to find a new producer.

Kitty was not sure if it was only a few short moments or her sleepiness had made her feel so, but in a blink of an eye, she was calmer and on her way to a restaurant with a large group. There were Jane, Cathy, walking close to her, every now and then one of them would peek at her wearily. She certainly did not like how they all were treating her like a child, but at this point, it did not feel exactly changeable. Aragon and Anna walked ahead of all, silently declaring themselves as the group leaders as well as protectors. Talking and joking, walking close together were Bridget, Maggie, Lina and Apollonia, Anne in the middle of the group, her eyes fixed on Maggie.  
Loud laughter sounded from Maggie, as she was smiling at a blushing Anne. The scene from the theater popped in front of her eyes, how her usually caring cousin was rushing to another’s help. She could feel anger rising in her chest, her fists balling as Anne once again embraced Maggie. She forced herself to exhale, a wind gust helping her to cool her anger. The scene once again floated in front of her, and she remembered how loud the men yelled, how frightened the girl looked.  
They arrived at the restaurant, finding a large table to sit at outside. Once Bridget, Lina and Apollonia put their bags aside, they insisted on ordering for them all, saying they visit the place often. Kitty sat next to Jane Seymour, as she always did, and Maggie was quick to claim her other side, Anne following in tow.  
As Aragon prayed in a hushed whisper, an awkward silence prevailed, not leaving after the divorced had raised her head. Jane, friendly as usual, was quick to try and find a topic of discussion.  
“Say, Maggie” all at the table looked at her, “why did you were late today?” Kitty let out a small sigh, preferring to talk about Maggie rather than the silence. “Oh,” said Maggie with a smile “I spent the night at my girlfriend’s and forgot to set an alarm. She didn’t made it easier ‘cause she tried to convince me to take a day off.”  
It was rather clear that Maggie had forgotten how long ago the queens had lived, her brow furrowed in confusion at the queens’ astonished looks.  
“What?” She asked, waiting for any of them to reason their bewilderment. “Why did you spend the night at your friend’s? Is everything alright about your housing?” Asked Jane first, maternal tone in her voice. Letting out an awkward, short laugh, Maggie nodded her head. “What? Jane no, all is fine about my house, my girlfriend and I just had a night in instead of going out.” Aragon let out a noise of realization, “oh, so like a friend, then why did you mention she’s a girl?” The woman returned to her confused expression. Pinching the bridge of her nose, Maggie felt as if she would never forget now from when the women from.  
Exhaling slowly, she raised her head, “no, I mean a girl who I am dating with.” If to judge by the queens’ expressions, it did not really help.  
Aragon looked shocked, mumbling passages in quick Spanish. Jane seemed to freeze, and Anna was seemingly trying to solve it as a math problem. Kitty looked towards Anne, who had her palm against her lips, her eyes tightly shut. Next to her was Cathy who simply shrugged, mumbling about how it was not her business.  
Looking at Maggie, it was almost funny how horrified she looked by their reactions, and as she took another glance at the women, Kitty could not help but agree. Glancing again at Maggie, she then realized she had yet to let the matter a thought.  
Hugging herself for a bit of pressure on her chest, Kitty let herself think about it. Her whole life she was taught that all girls must marry a man, that unless he dies, she must remain by his side, and when she was seven suddenly men could also divorce their wives.  
Her past life.  
The realization struck her like a lightning bolt, and wide eyed she looked outside their small group. People were driving colorful cars on a paved land, bicycles were the closest she had seen to horses outside of stables, and two men with a small child who held their hands had reminded her how awfully recently she found out about laws that meant to protect kids. Looking down at herself, her pulse rushed as she realized that the lack of cross around her neck, her colorful clothing and loose hair would all be considered simply sinful in her past life.  
Looking at Maggie, Kitty understood why she did not think there would be a problem with her having a girlfriend. But looking at the baffled women and Maggie’s regretful expression, she also understood that those reactions were no less common in this century.  
Gently touching Maggie’s shoulder, her hand immediately retrieving, she said “the-we just tend to be stuck in past life’s line of thought, you just need to explain it a bit more.”  
Giving her a tired look, Maggie let out a small smile “do you get it?” Deciding to answer honestly, Kitty nodded her head. “Not too much, I do realize things have changed, a lot has changed,” she gestured to their surroundings with small movements. “But we weren’t briefed on anything, so it’s a bit hard to change ourselves and our opinions.” Maggie hummed affirmatively, a sad look still in her eyes.  
“I think that if we could learn about it, they’ll understand.” Kitty tried again, hoping that she was correct. A glint of hope was in Maggie’s eyes as she frantically searched her bag. “I think I know a place.”

***

The large building seemed fitting beneath the dark skies, it’s plain colors making it indifferent from the surroundings. The front half of it was worn off gray, but in their way their Kitty noticed the other half was with children’s drawings. Although most people were already out of work this evening, light could be seen from every window.  
“Are we all just gonna stand and stare?” Asked Anna suddenly, making Kitty flinch in fear despite the woman made sure not to yell. Holding the door open for them, the older whispered “sorry” as she entered the warm building, and a slight smile spread across her lips.  
If Kitty had known the trouble it would take them to find the meeting room, she probably was more thankful to Anna who agreed to take them. Kitty had a hard time remembering directions, Anne could barely focus on where she wanted to go to, and Cathy was busy mumbling facts about seemingly anything in their way. So Kitty felt glad that Anna was able to actually concentrate on anything.  
They were late in almost twenty minutes by the time they entered the room, but the meeting itself was yet to start. A table on the side proudly presented snacks and a coffee maker, the walls were plastered with colorful flags, and the people were talking between themselves.  
Seeing their hesitation, a colored hair person approached them. “Hey, you guys are here for the GSA?” Peeking at the paper Maggie gave them, Anna nodded. “Cool, we’re starting this meeting soon,” they led them into the room, continuing talking calmly. “You don’t have to speak if you don’t feel like it, if there is something you don’t understand, just ask,” looking around them, they looked for more information to give the confused women. “Either way, I’m Linn, I go mostly by they, but she is also nice.” The women gave them a confused look, and they let out a short, surprisingly honest laugh. “I’ll explain to y’all pronounces in a minute, gotta check the other instructor, meanwhile try to talk to people here.”  
Turning back to the rest of the group, it was easy to notice that most were looking rather unique. From colorful hair to out of the ordinary outfits and to more permanent changes to one’s body. A girl whose entire arm was covered with colorful art, her talking slurred from a ring around her bottom lip, to a green haired guy with a small, simple lined, drawing on his arm. Two figures behind them were talking between themselves, standing close to a large, laughing group. The girl had short hair, the longest strands of it barely reaching her eyes, and the boy looked around them, nervous. He had pulled the sleeves of his gray sweater to his hands, only the tips of his fingers visible. A short guy entered the room, panting slightly. Half of his head was nearly shaven, his natural hair was light brown, while the grown out half was fading red, reaching to his chin.  
He quickly made his way to their group, stopping by a few of the presents to greet them. “Hi, I’m Oliver, I’m the other instructor. Linn told me we have a few new folks, but don’t worry, no one gotta speak. We will start soon, if Linn ever gets themselves here.” He said the last part with enough laughter to make Kitty feel at ease. “Why don’t you grab yourselves chairs ‘til they get here? It’s definitely my fault they’re stalled, but I’ll be glad to take this chance to talk to you.”  
Exchanging looks between themselves, they all decided to sit as he offered, Anne making sure to sit next to her cousin. “So, what do you guys here for?” He looked at them with kindness. “Maggie said that some of her friends are trying to understand queerness, so I’ll guess these are you.” “Yes,” Anne said, her ears are a bit red, “we’re Maggie’s friends. And we here to understand...queerness?”  
His smile growing, Oliver nodded. “Yeah, she said you know pretty much nothing about it, well beside Cathy,” he gave her a charming smile, “but never mind it now. So, it's a bit hard to explain, and you probably learn more as the meeting goes along, but now I can let you know the basics.” He held his hand against his chest, “I’m a trans guy, and my pronouns are he and him, Linn is a demi girl and usually prefers they, but she is cool.”  
Feeling as if she once again in a private, unreasonable class from her previous life, Kitty blushed. “Um, Oliver?” She hated how small her voice sounded, but he had such encouragement in his eyes for her to continue. “Why are you saying how to refer to you? And what’s trans, and demi? And I’m not sure you can refer to someone as they.” She felt dumb for questioning things he said with such certainty, but Oliver smiled.  
“That’s fine you don’t know these kinds of things, there are a lot who don’t but at least you ask,” while Oliver was answering Kitty’s question, Anne was looking at the flag covered wells. The flags were colorful and had bright colors, save for a few. There were a few news articles on a bulletin board, alongside pictures of two women holding hands, two men hugging a child, someone waving one of the colorful flags. Before she could ask Oliver for the board, Linn was gathering the group.  
All the people were soon sitting in a circle, and Anne found her place near Kitty.  
“Hi, everyone, we are gonna start now, so let’s just go in a circle and everyone would just say their name, pronouns, why they are here, and a hobby.” Looking at Linn, Kitty wondered if all the instructors were always this happy.  
“I’ll start, my name is Linn, I go by they and she, and I’m a demi girl, and I like to draw.” The green haired guy nodded, “hi, everyone. My name is George and I use he and him. I’m gay and I guess my hobby is to make movies.” It seemed everyone in the room knew the terminology that was used, so Kitty felt lucky when Anna asked “what’s that?”  
George looked at them, his eyebrows raising, “you seriously don’t know what gay means?” His voice was part surprised, part annoyed, as if he was used that everyone knows what the word means.  
“Well, I know that gay means happy, but it seems that people in this time don’t use it this way.” Anna said it with coldness, and the guy became more confused, but Oliver jumped in, explaining the term’s current meaning.  
The introduction continued, each person explaining their queerness, aside from an old man who said he was there because his daughter came out. Soon it was the turn of the nervous boy, who was fidgeting with his sleeves as eyes turned to him. “Hi, my name is Edward, my pronouns are he and him, and I like to bake.” Furrowing their brow, Linn looked at the boy as the girl next to him squeezed his hand, muttering to him. The boy let out a sigh, “and I’m ace, asexual. But it’s not really makes me queer, ‘cause I’m heteroromantic.”  
Oliver looked at the boy sympathetically, “Edward, being ace is a form of queerness, like being trans or gay, asexuals still face discrimination from society, and it does not matter if you’re heteroromantic.” Edward nodded, his eyes at the floor, a girl next to him wrapped an arm around him.  
“Hi, Oliver?” Kitty asked, curious for the new term. “What’s ace? Or asexual?” Edward moved slightly in his chair, but Oliver answered. “Being asexual, or in short ace, is to feel low to complete lack of sexual attraction, some asexual people feel comfortable with doing sexual things, some don’t. It does not invalidate any of them. There are also aromantic people, which experiences little or no romantic attraction to others.” Oliver stopped for a moment from his speedy explanation as Kitty took it in.  
“Some people are both ace and aro, some people are just one, and it’s all valid. If you’re aromantic and heterosexual, you’re still queer, just as you’re if you heteroromantic and ace.” Linn was much calmer than Oliver, glancing at Edward at the end of her sentence.  
Silence was held in place for a moment, letting Kitty a chance to realize the new ideas presented to her, ones which were far from being spoken in her time, not in whispers and not out loud.  
“Well, anyway, it is alright that we continue?” Linn asked, earning hums of agreement. A guy next to Edward spoke quickly, “my name is Dave, he and him, I’m pan, but I’m dating this girl, s-” “you’re still queer.” Oliver cut him.  
Looking at him for a moment, Dave nodded, and continued speaking as he noticed the women’s expressions. “Pan means I’m attracted to all the gender spectrum, so I don’t really mind what someone’s gender.” He glanced at the group for a second, making sure they understood, “and my hobby is photography.”  
The round continued, and soon enough it was Anna’s turn. “My name is Anna, my pronouns are she and hers, and we just came here because our friend is a lesbian and we had no idea what’s that, but you definitely gave us a lot to think about.” She ended her things with a rough laugh, adding “my hobby is singing.” Cathy, Anne and Kitty nodded, confirming that Anna had spoken for them all.  
“Okay, so I’m Oliver, my pronouns are he and him, I’m a trans guy and my hobby is writing.” Some people nodded, “I guess we’ll take a break now, just to let y’all a chance to talk, and we continue in like, fifteen minutes and discuss some things, alright?” A collective “alright” was muttered as people stood up, Anne nearly jumping as she got up.  
“What do you think?” She asked, clearly excited and wanting them to feel the same. “To be honest, it was a bit confusing at first, but I think I get it.” Said Cathy hesitantly, receiving a smile from Anne. “Some of the things sounded,” Anna took a second to think, “more than understandable.”  
In another time, in another place, Anna’s words would have earned her a lifetime of being a social outcast, while in this time and place they fought and found each other. In another place, the other queens knew they must respond with disgust, to call out in fear from anyone who dared to defy the norm. With a different mindset, Kitty would not have had to courage to say in a crooked voice “it’s relatable.”

***

After the break, Oliver and Linn explained some queer history, telling about poets, writers and actors to politicians, doctors and monarchs. It felt weird to think that queerness had even existed in their time, everyone making sure to woo and marry the other sex, but at the same time, it was logical that they existed. Looking around the room, Kitty imagined them in long sleeves, puffy skirts and a ridiculous amount of undergarments. They seem to fit there, with colored hair, piercings and tattoos, because they have always been there.  
On their ride home, each woman was in her own thoughts, Anne was the first to speak. “Are we gonna tell Jane and Aragon about the meeting?” Cathy furrowed her brow, “of course, they know where we went,” she said, not understanding why it was a question in the first place.  
“But, like, are you sure they get it? They can be more traditional,” Anne pointed out. Anna nodded, “Aragon was a second from exorcism and Jane looked terrified, maybe we shouldn’t.” She ended her sentence uncomfortably, more suggesting it as a bad idea.  
“I think we should tell them,” Kitty said, surprising confidence in her voice. “They should realize all of it, like us.” The rest of the women hummed in agreement, which was lucky since they just reached their house.

***

A weak sun shone at them as they crossed the mostly empty street, a rush of wind made Kitty wrap her coat around herself. The skies above were light gray, waiting for the sun to shine stronger. Their first show was scheduled for the very morning, alongside a show at noon and evening, but they had enough time to hang out with their understudies before the last show of the day.  
Soon they were in the theater, getting so early that even the producer was too tired to comment. They put their bags aside, talking among themselves in hushed talking, slowly their understudies joining.  
The door opened once more, Maggie entered the room, her dark locks moving in the harsh wind, her outfit was turquoise and green and light makeup on her face. She sat her bag in the messy pile, finding a place next to Anne.  
The rehearsal and the first to shows went in a blink of an eye, the room was lifeful and calm, jokes landing well enough for Cathy to suggest that they were better actors than themselves, and shortly after they were on their way to the same restaurant as last time.  
Entering the establishment, the group sat at the same table as last time, Kitty sitting next to Anne, who was followed by Maggie. Lina, Apollonia, Aragon and Jane were talking about what they should order, and Bridget received a call from her partner, so Maggie, Anna, Cathy, Anne and Kitty were remained to talk on their own.  
Anna took the lead for the conversion, “oh, we went to that meeting you’ve told us about.” Maggie’s smile grew, “really? I hope you didn’t felt weirded out by that, it’s not like people talked about it in your time.” Anne nodded, “not, actually not. And it did helped to make some things clear.”  
After the meeting, they explain everything to Aragon and Jane over dinner, and by the time they ate breakfast Anne announced she is pansexual. She felt comfortable with coming out to anyone who crossed her path, and she blushed just a little as she came out to a cute girl she used to have a crush on.  
Maggie squealed with joy, hugging Anne immediately, then explaining what happened to the surprised and a bit terrified part of their group.

***

After their evening show, they returned to the house tired, yet somehow Jane still had the energy to make dinner, telling them to rest for half an hour. Anne was polite enough to thank her before she rushed to her room.  
Kitty sat near the counter, she would usually talk to Jane as she made their meals, feeling bad about not helping her. “Hey, Jane?” Jane looked up from the vegetables she was washing, “yes?” It was obvious she stopped herself from saying a motherly nickname, and Kitty was thankful. She and Jane were close, but not there.  
“You keep saying that he truly loved you, and you loved him,” even uttering his name felt too much on some days. Jane nodded, watching the younger carefully, “what does love feel like? Romantic love,” she felt her face growing hot, but she was not sure why.  
Jane wiped her hands in a towel, starting to cut a salad as she phrased an answer in her mind. “It’s hard to describe, everyone feels differently. But you feel so good when you’re near him-them” she corrected herself. “They can make you a better person, but they know that you’re as good as you are. Things get easier around them, you look at them and you feel invincible. They’re easy, they just know what to say and do to help you. For you, they’re marvelous.”  
As Jane finished, a few tears stood at the corners of her eyes, but she was quick to blink those away.  
Hugging herself, Kitty thought about what Jane said. All of these sounded logical for being loved and loving, she just could not see herself feeling it romantically. She thought back to her previous life, cutting out every man who said he loved her. She thought of handsome guys, who smiled at her after looking to both sides once she was crowned. She thought of lovely women, who looked at her and giggled, the blush rising to their ears. She thought of a one who wore a mask, their clothes too big, and asked to be referred to as Duke.  
She never thought she loved any of the guys, but they would put small flowers in her hand as it was kissed, so she said she did. She would not lay awake at night, imagining a better world with any woman, but they would whisper compliments to her ear when no one looked. She liked Duke, they were so unique, but they treated her as a fool.  
“Jane?” She said, worried and excited, the woman lifted her head, her hand hovering over spices for the salad. “I’m…” she looked at the lines on the older furrowed forehead, her eyes looking at her worriedly, “I’m aromantic.”  
It felt great to say it out loud, to just name it. To understand who she is was one of the greatest things she experienced, and the feeling grew stronger as Jane hugged her.  
The woman backed off a little, “sorry, I know you have a hard time with-” “that’s fine.” Kitty said, hugging the woman again.  
Letting each other go, Kitty added “I’m also asexual.” Jane simply nodded, smiling at her proudly, “who you are is you, and that’s alright.” Kitty smiled, “could you just not tell anyone? I want to tell them at my own pace.” A part of her felt silly at the request, so opposite to Anne who told everyone. “Of course, what makes you comfortable, sweetie.”  
Tucking a pink strand behind her ear, Kitty felt better than she ever had.


End file.
